Amidst the tough stance shown by US President Donald Trump and the sanctions imposed on Iran, no allocation has been made for the much talked about Chabahar Port Project in the Union Budget. Whereas provisions have been made for this project in the budget for many years.
Unlike the past few years, India has not allocated any funds for the Chabahar port project in its budget. India was allocating Rs 100 crore annually for this mega connectivity project in Sistan-Baluchistan province on the southern coast of Iran. India is also a major partner in preparing this Chabahar port.
In September last year, the US had imposed tough economic sanctions on Iran, but India was given a six-month extension by the Trump administration to avoid punitive measures on the Chabahar port project. This exemption from America is ending on April 26.
Last month, External Affairs Ministry spokesperson Randhir Jaiswal had said that India is in talks with the US on the issue related to the Chabahar port project.
News agency PTI says, it has been learned that India was considering other options related to this project after the Trump administration threatened to impose 25 percent additional tariff on countries doing business with Tehran.
Chabahar port is being built by India and Iran to boost connectivity and trade relations. Both countries are also pushing to make Chabahar Port a special part of the International North-South Transport Corridor (INSTC).
The International North-South Transport Corridor is a 7,200 km long multi-mode transport project to transport freight between India and Iran as well as Afghanistan, Armenia, Azerbaijan, Russia, Central Asia and Europe.
